Montreal mayoral candidates to face off in English-language debate Oct. 28
Three candidates for mayor of Montreal will have a chance to win over voters in an English-language debate later this month.
Valerie Plante, Denis Coderre and Balarama Holness will take part in a televised debate on Thursday, Oct. 28 from 5:30 - 7 p.m.
CTV Montreal’s Mutsumi Takahashi and CBC Montreal’s Debra Arbec will moderate the event, presented by a consortium comprised of local English news outlets: CTV, CJAD 800, CBC TV & Radio, Citytv, Global Television and The Montreal Gazette.
Language is sure to come up as the candidates recently made their voices heard on the issue. Plante said she is seeking to promote French in the metropolis, while Holness is seeking bilingual status for Montreal. Coderre nixed the idea of a referendum on language, calling it “too divisive.”
The English debate will be broadcast live and livestreamed, commercial free, including on CTV Montreal and CTVNewsMontreal.ca and on CJAD 800 radio.
The mayoral candidates will say their piece on six topics -- housing, public safety, economy, climate crisis, inclusion and transportation -- each of which will include a pre-recorded video question from a member of the public.
The announcement comes a day after four mayoral candidates took part in a debate at the Université de Montreal put on by six youth organizations and with a focus on young voters. That debate focused on hot-button issues including affordable housing and public transportation.
Frontrunners Plante from Projet Montreal and Ensemble Montreal's Coderre have already verbally sparred in prior debates and are slated to face off Oct. 18 in an economic debate hosted by the Montreal Chamber of Commerce.
Holness, who recently merged his Mouvement Montreal campaign with that of with Raillement pour Montreal, spoke to media about the decision to be left out of the debate, saying voters deserve to hear what his party has to say.
A recent Leger poll had the Mouvement Montreal leader at 10 per cent, and he has candidates running in 75 per cent of the city's districts, which Holness said meets the criteria set out by the Chamber of Commerce.
The Chamber of Commerce has since clarified that, saying that because the Leger poll was not independent -- rather, it was commissioned by Projet Montreal -- it does not grant Holness eligibility.
Plante and Coderre are in a tight rematch of their 2017 campaign, with the Projet Montreal / Leger poll putting them at 36 and 35 per cent, respectively. A previous Leger / Le Devoir poll put Coderre at 37 per cent, and Plante and 36 per cent.
Municipal elections take place Nov. 7.
NOTE: A previous version of this article contained an email address for the public to sumbit its questions, but has been removed as the deadline has now passed.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Half of Canadians have negative opinion of latest Liberal budget: poll
A new poll suggests the Liberals have not won over voters with their latest budget, though there is broad support for their plan to build millions of homes.
opinion Why you should protect your investments by naming a trusted contact person
Appointing a trusted person to help with financial obligations can give you peace of mind. In his personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew outlines the key benefits of naming a confidant to take over your financial responsibilities, if the need ever arises.
Teacher shortages see some Ontario high school students awarded perfect grades on midterm exams
Students at a high school in York Region have been awarded perfect marks on their midterm exams in three subjects – not because of their academic performances however, but because they had no teacher.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Ottawa injects another $36M into vaccine injury compensation fund
The federal government has added $36.4 million to a program designed to support people who have been seriously injured or killed by vaccines since the end of 2020.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
An Ontario senior thought he called Geek Squad for help with his printer. Instead, he got scammed out of $25,000
An Ontario senior’s attempt to get technical help online led him into a spoofing scam where he lost $25,000. Now, he’s sharing his story to warn others.
Her fiance has been in prison for 49 years. She's trying to free him before it’s too late
She was lying in bed on a Thursday morning, thinking about the man she loved, hoping to win his freedom before time ran out.